Saturday, November 2, 2013

A New Local Band, Viva La Battle Updates, And New Videos!!

Keeping the news coming as we clear out our cache of backlogged stories, today's post features a new concert video from a recent high school event, a new cover and album sample from a talented Sault Michigan outfit, and the lastest updates on our next local battle of the bands, but first, here's a new band who will debut at said battle, so check everything out below!

We have a new local band to introduce on here, and they're a new hard rock quartet named Punch! Little is known on them so far beyond their lineup, which features Haggith frontman Curtis McKenzie and guitarist Daniel Horton joining forces with Suicide Kings guitarist Steven Flint (on bass) and drummer Ben Boudreau. Promising lineup that merges members of the top two bands from the Rockstar Bar Battle of the Bands in April, so keep that angle in mind! Information on their sound isn't out yet, but they will make their live debut in under two weeks when they compete at Viva La Battle at The Canadian Nightclub on November 13th, where they will be among the bands competing for the last opening slot at next month's Bam Margera/Fuckface Unstoppable concert! I will note that Punch replaced The Suicide Kings on the battle lineup, and while a reason hasn't been announced for their exit, bassist Mitch Sirie is still competing at the battle with The Bear Hunters, so I wouldn't be surprised if singer Mike Gaetano had an outside commitment.

The Suicide Kings haven't played live since August, so hopefully there's nothing bad concerning their status, but if I hear anything either way, I'll keep you guys posted! I would assume though that Punch are more or less succeeding Haggith after their December breakup, and their lineup is very promising on it's own, but how will they sound, what will they play, and how will they do at the battle? Find out on November 13th, where they're competing against the aforementioned Bear Hunters, "secret" debuting band Keep It Lit, and Greg Callaghan's new band project North West (info forthcoming, hopefully), and the deadline for band submissions has been extended too! Promoter J.D. Pearce revealed on the Facebook event page yesterday that submissions now end on THURSDAY, and he also confirmed that each band has a 25 minute set, performance order will be determined an hour before show time, and there will be a $5 cover charge that will gain you both entry and a ballot for the fan vote.

Check the above links for more details on Viva La Battle! This should be a great event, especially with three bands making their live public debut, but fans of The Suicide Kings and Haggith will wanna take notice of Punch, who are now in our active Sault Ontario band links! Stay tuned for updates on the battle, apply A.S.A.P. to compete at this link, and if you hear anything on North West's lineup/sound, let me know!

We'll close today with new videos, starting with a YouTube version of Sault Michigan classical metal band Theatre of Night's cover of the "Halloween" movie's theme song! Uploaded to their YouTube channel on Halloween (naturally) after it's prior Reverbnation posting, the cover is accompanied by their trademark slideshows featuring band members and assorted themed pictures in (mostly) red & orange filters to fit the seasonal theme, before closing with a credits and a teaser to their new all-original album in 2014, including assorted instrumental clips of the 13 songs to be on it. Everything sounds promising, and the "Halloween" theme's never been heavier, so check everything out below!

And finally, here's a new metal cover from a recent Superior Heights Collegiate event! Uploaded to Ashes to Dust guitarist Alex Hemy's YouTube channel (his first live concert posting there), this is not of Ashes To Dust (unless their lineup has radically changed), but it is of Alex and a few other students covering Guns N' Roses "Sweet Child O' Mine", which turns out well! Possibly from a Halloween costume day (given what students in the crowd are wearing), this is a solid cover with nice vocals from the female singer (I believe her first name was given as "Kat"), and while Alex's guitar work is solid, the solo actually was done by the guitarist on the far left, who has talent himself! Check out this full Superior Heights performance below!

That's all for now, but stay tuned tonight for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post! Thanks everyone!